How many times have you bought car or truck and told yourself, "I'm just going to leave this one as is and drive it?" So you do drive it for a couple weeks, maybe a month, and then something needs to be repaired or replaced. Well, that little fix, it gets you to thinking, "Man, she would sure look good with a new set of wheels or even sitting a little lower to the ground!" So, the curse of not being able to leave well enough alone--or better yet, leaving something "stock"--has hit you and there's nothing that can be done but to satisfy those temptations.
This curse was the case with this particular '75 Chevy Cheyenne. Purchased with the sole intent of being just a "work truck," it soon became a daily driver. Well, daily drivers need to be up to par mechanically, and the old workhorse, albeit previously owned by a so-called garage, was in dire need of brakes, bushings, and some not-so-minor engine work (flat cam among other things--but that's another story for another day). Talks lead us to Jim Chaddick at Performance Online, a company coming on strong in the early-truck market. While Jim was in the process of developing his own line for the '73-85 Chevys/GMCs, he wasn't quite ready to debut it. So we suggested just using his replacement drilled/vented disc brake and suspension rebuild kits featuring Raybestos and Spicer products for the time being. He agreed, and we left the truck with his trusty crew.
Since we were going to have the suspension apart, why not have it lowered while we were at it? Sure, it's not stock, but it does make the truck look a heck of a lot nicer sitting closer to the new 15-inch wheels. Being that the ball joints were getting replaced, it only made sense that we throw in a set of 2-inch dropped spindles and 2-inch-lower coils, right? Sure it did, but it also forced the issue with the rear suspension. So it only made sense to bring down the back, as well. Our choice for drop components was Belltech's 4/6 (4-inch front, 6-inch rear) kit, which included the aforementioned spindles and coils, as well as a flip kit for the rear. Okay, so we weren't really making things easy on Jim, and we for sure weren't sticking to our guns in regards to leaving things alone... But, hey, we're car guys; we can't leave things alone!
If we could just convince ourselves (and our better halves, especially) that we will never, under any circumstances, leave our vehicles stock, then there would surely be peace in the valley! On the flipside of that, we'd never have any fun, would we?! So, follow along as we "ruin" another stock truck...just the way it should be! We'll start off with the desecration of the frontend, followed up with a story next month as we finish the rear.
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With collaboration between Performance Online and Belltech products, we had quite the "package" to deal with. On top of that, Performance Online (we'll refer to them as POL from here) agreed to perform the install, as well. |
Using their line of Spicer/Raybestos suspension and braking components gave a feeling of confidence, and along with the 4/6 Belltech drop, it was guaranteed the truck would not be so easy to crawl under anymore! |
This is what I had been dealing with since the initial purchase of the truck--improper shocks, worn-out everything, and brakes pretty much riding on rivets! |
It was indeed time for a major overhaul! |
Removal of the majority of suspension parts was pretty self-explanatory (you'll need a pickle fork/air chisel to separate the tie-rod ends, ball joints, etc.), but be very careful when releasing the pressure from the coils. |
If you don't have a spring compressor, at the very least use a floor jack to "slowly" drop the lower control arm when removing the coil. |
It's also a good idea to keep the tie rods nearby and in the length they were removed in for future reference. |
Removing the lower control arms is simple. |
Just pop the nuts off the retaining U-bolts and move on! |
When removing the uppers, it's a good idea to keep the alignment shims together (as they came out)... |
...to make life easier when you go to align your newly lowered frontend! |
Wrapping up the first "R" of our R&R was the steering. Without a proper puller, you'll never get the Pitman arm off, so make sure you're well equipped before you start throwing things! |
Ultimately, this is what you wanna see before you jump into rebuilding your frontend--nothing! I felt bad for the POL guys since I hadn't taken the time to pressure-wash all the junk from beneath (figured the excess grease would make it easier to remove things!). |
Although essentially the same, pre-'73 control arms feature eccentric (threaded) control arm bushings; ours are the later press-in style (shown being removed here with the air chisel). |
Once de-greased and painted, the control arms received brand-new Spicer ball joints. |
Notice that the ball joints are bolt-in; you will need to chisel/drill the factory rivets out to remove the old ones. |
Finally, the new Spicer rubber (not urethane) control arm bushings were pressed (or hammered or slipped) in place. A little grease (even white lithium) always helps motivate things too, if you get the drift! |
The control arms were then re-hung on the crossmember. |
Before moving on to the Belltech portion of the job, the remainder of the Spicer steering components were installed. Now is the time to dig out those old tie rods! |
With the control arms spread apart, the new Belltech dropped coil slid right into the pockets, followed by their dropped spindle. |
Dust boot are your friends--so is grease. Use them both wisely! Just as important, do not forget cotter pins wherever necessary! |
Our last Belltech items to go in place were the Nitroactive gas shocks. For those concerned with shock length and angle, performance Online offers an upper relocating mount. |
Finally, the new Raybestos rotors (vented, cross-drilled by POL) and calipers were installed onto the Belltech spindles. In place of the standard pads, Raybestos sent a set of their new heavy-duty ceramic pads for better stopping power and less mess. |
Save for final alignment, that was all she wrote for the frontend portion of this job. If you're the type who likes things a little closer to earth, you'll have to explore lower control arm options (which Performance Online should have available by the time issue hits the newsstands). Stay tuned next month when show you the "simple" steps to getting the rear down. |